Youko's Forgotten Past
by muie5
Summary: A female demon is the new mission of the YYH gang. How is she connected to Youko and what will happen when they meet as enemies?
1. Chapter 1: Torture

**Muie5: **Hello. This is a story I wrote a while back. It is an AU so please no flames about that. I hope you enjoy the first chapter. And the others will be up soon, I just have to reread them. After all I did write this over 3 years ago. ^_^ Enjoy!

**Chapter 1: Torture**

"Are we sure Koenma sent us to the right place?" asked an unsure orange haired teen boy.

"Kuwabara, heck if I know," answered another teen-age boy, but this one had greased-back, black hair and wore a white T-shirt with blue jeans.

"He better not have sent us on a wild duck chase," warned the boy now known as Kuwabara.

"It's called 'a wild _goose_ chase'. Besides it's not like you have anything important to do, baka," stated a man with spiky black hair that was outlined with blue and a star burst in the middle towards his forehead.

"Why you!" Kuwabara yelled, placing a foot towards the man's direction.

"I doubt Koenma would send us off on a mission without knowing the location," the tall, red haired, green-eyed man butted in.

"Kurama's right. If anything, Koenma would know the location," the teenage boy stated.

"That would be the only thing he knows," the man stated.

"Now, Hiei. I'm sure he tried to find out all he could about this demon," Kurama stated.

"So, Urameshi. Are we just going to stand here till the demon shows up?" asked Kuwabara.

"READY!" came a female's voice.

The four men turned in time to see a young-looking woman running at them from the shadows, kunai knife in her right hand. Kurama took out a rose from his hair and transformed it as the others got out of the way. The thorn whip clashed with the kunai knife.

The woman's blue eyes showed frustration as she looked at the man in front of her. Her one black ear and one silver ear on top of her head shifted some.

**-20 Years Earlier- **

A young girl ran through the trees of the Forest of Tragedy. Her shoulder length hair flew in her face as the cold winds of night set in.

"Get back here, kid!" ordered a man with long black hair, brown eyes, two horns above his ears, and he wore a white outfit.

The girl looked back to see the group of men right behind her. She looked forward once more as she tripped over a root.

"She tripped! Let's get her!" yelled another man.

In a second the girl looked around and spotted an old oak tree. Without hesitation she quickly got up and ran to it. As soon as she reached the tree, she crawled into a hole that looked like it was rotted out in the tree. Many men surrounded the oak tree in seconds after. The young girl wrapped her cat-like tail around her small form. Her cat-like ears on top of her head drooped some. She hugged her legs close to her body as a form of protection from her pursuers.

"Stupid girl," a man with light green hair and red eyes exclaimed.

One of them reached in to the hole to get her. When she saw the hand enter the hole, she leaned over and bit the hand as hard as she could. The man pulled his hand out of the hole and shook it as if that would help the pain go away faster.

"Dang brat! She bit me," he stated in a growl.

"I can see that you're still as good as ever with the ladies," mocked a male's voice.

"Shut up, Kuronue!" ordered the demon.

A demon walked through the crowd that separated for him and stopped in front of the man. This demon wore a tight black vest that had ripped sleeves, black ties wrapped around his arms from the wrists almost all the way to his shoulders, and a white skirt-like garment over a pair of black pants. Hanging from his neck was a red pendent on a sliver chain. On top of this black bat winged demon was a black hat that was nicked, had the top ripped off, and had a gold platelet on the front of it. His raven black hair came out of the top of the hat in a ponytail.

"Do you think you can do any better, Kuronue?" asked another man from the crowd.

Kuronue walked up to the old oak tree and stuck his arm right in. Once again the young girl leaned over and bit his hand as hard as she could. Kuronue pulled out his hand that now had a trickle of blood coming from the tiny holes in his skin.

"That brat!" Kuronue growled.

"That was_ so _much better, Kuronue," laughed a demon from the crowd.

Kuronue put both hands into the hole. In doing so he caused the girl to try to move away, but Kuronue grabbed onto her throat.

"It's Youko," said several demons.

"Make room!" ordered some more demons.

"Kuronue. Yomi. What are you all doing?" asked a sly, calm voice.

Kuronue quickly let go of the girl and turned around. Yomi took a step back while Kuronue put his back ageist the hole.

"Youko!" Kuronue said a bit surprised at seeing his leader here.

"Why are all my men out here?" Youko asked again, a bit colder this time.

"We were just…"

"Waiting for you to get back," Yomi cut in.

Just then Kuronue started to move back and forth slightly. The young demon was beating on Kuronue's back has hard as she could. Youko put his right hand on Kuronue's left shoulder. With one swift shove Kuronue got pushed out of the way.

The young girl fell out of the tree and into Youko's arms. She punched him in the gut as hard as she could and jumped back into the hole. The crowd started to mumble stuff about what the girl just did. Others grinned and prepared to watch the blood bath. Youko ignored his bandits and bet down to peer inside the tree. In there, sat the scared demon girl. Her entire body started to shiver as she looked into Youko's cold, merciless golden eyes.

"Cat?" Youko asked quietly.

The girl nodded softly. Youko put his right arm into the hole. The girl scooted away till she hit the back of the hole. Youko just stared into her eyes with his right arm extended out to her.

The girl looked into Youko's eyes. Her cattail unwrapped from around her body and her cat ears lifted. She put her right hand into Youko's larger one. Youko turned to his bandits with the young girl in his arms. The bandit with light green hair reached for the little girl with lust in his eyes. The girl grabbed tightly onto Youko's garments and hid her face into his chest without thinking. The bandit grabbed the girl's left arm with a lustful smile creeping onto his face.

"Now the fun begins," the bandit said, starting to pull the girl from Youko's arms.

The girl buried her head into Youko's chest even deeper as a last attempt to save herself. Youko shifted the young girl into his left arm and grabbed the bandit's wrist. All the other bandits looked on with curiosity. A grayish vine started to wrap around the bandit's arm.

"Youko!" the bandit pleaded as the vine wrapped around the rest of his body.

"No one is to harm this demon girl. If any of you disobey this you will die in the most horrific way," Youko warned looking out at his bandits.

The bandits started to mumble various things. Youko gave them all a cold glare which shut them all up. He released the bandit that was wrapped with his vines.

"Get back to the hideout. We have a heist at daybreak," Youko ordered.

Everyone but Yomi and Kuronue started to head back through the forest. Youko looked at his best friend and his right hand man.

"Youko, why do you want to save a weak demon like her?" Kuronue asked, taking a step towards his friend.

"Don't question me, Kuronue. Let us get back to the hideout. I need you both at the top of your game for this heist," Youko stated, walking back through the forest with the girl still in his arms.

Kuronue and Yomi shrugged at each other before following Youko. Youko stopped at a calm river while Yomi and Kuronue kept going towards their hideout. The moonlight hit the river in such a way that it caused the water to shine a beautiful blue. The light of the moon reflected in the river lit up the girl's face enough for her features to show. She had blue eyes that matched the crystal blue river and shoulder length hair that was a muddy brown. Her kimono was ripped all over and was barely covering her.

Youko put her down and walked over to a bolder. He sat down on the bolder and crossed his arms as the girl gave him a confused glance.

"Get washed up," Youko ordered.

The girl nodded and took off her damaged kimono that was a beautiful blue with stars on the sleeves with a royal purple tie. Youko turned so his right side was facing her. She got into the water and started to wash her tail.

"Where is your tribe?" Youko asked a bit coldly.

The girl lowered her head and ears. She started to wash her muddy hair as if it was a habit of her that she did to try to avoid a subject. Youko turned his head a bit towards the young girl. He realized that she was not going to answer his question.

The girl got out and started to pick up her kimono. Youko slid of the bolder and walked over to the girl. She looked up at him with her kimono clenched to her body tightly. He took off his white garment and dropped it onto her.

"Your clothing is ripped terribly. Take this," Youko explained, turning his head from her as he spoke.

She smiled at him and happily took his garment off of her head where it landed. She wrapped it around her small body. It ended up like a kimono to her, reaching to a little below her knees. Youko looked at her as a cloud covered the moonlight. When the cloud moved on the young girl looked up at him in the eyes.

This is when he noticed that she had a cut going from the bottom of her right eye to her chin. Her shoulder length hair was red, black, and silver and so was her tail. He noticed her left ear was black and her right one was silver. She just stared at the handsome silver haired demon with matching fox ears and tail with golden eyes.

"Let's go," Youko ordered, walking off.

The girl started to follow him but fell to the ground with her first step. Youko turned around to look down at her and saw her hold her left ankle with pain in her eyes. He walked over to her, bent down, and took her hand off of her ankle. There was a deep cut going almost all the way around her ankle with blood flowing freely from the wound.

Youko ripped a strip from the long garment the girl now wore. He got some water from the river before kneeling down in front of the girl. He placed his hand on the ground and an herb grew out of the soil. He started to work on her ankle rather fast but gentle so as not to cause more pain for the young demon girl. The girl just watched him carefully as he disinfected the wound.

"I never really knew my parents. I'm guessing the same could be said for you," Youko said after a long silence as he worked on her.

The girl lowered her head and ears once more. Youko wrapped her ankle and then looked up at her face. She wrapped her tail around her waist in a way that Youko noticed was to comfort herself.

"You don't talk, do you?" he asked.

The girl nodded slightly. So Youko stood up and swept the girl up into his arms.

"When you decide to, I would like to know the name of the girl I'll protect with my life," he said, walking through the forest.

The young girl looked up at him as Youko kept looking forward. She snuggled her head into his chest and closed her eyes. Just as she started to fall into the calm darkness of sleep, Youko suddenly stopped. The sudden jolt caused the demon girl to open her eyes to the sight of demons surrounding them.

"The legendary Youko Kurama appears to have a little girlfriend," mocked a red and purple skinned demon.

Youko shifted the girl into his left arm so he could have a free hand. The ten demons took out their axes and masses. Youko pulled out a seed from his silver hair and closed it in his palm.

"I will not stand for trespassers," Youko said coldly.

"Attack!" yelled one of the demons.

With that command all the demons lunged at Youko and the little girl. The girl put her head in Youko's chest and closed her eyes tightly. Youko bent down and put the hand with the seed on the ground. Bamboo trees and vines shot out from the ground. With great precision the plants hit their marks. Each demon got a plant through the heart.

When Youko stood back up he felt the young girl shivering. He looked down at her small, quivering body. She kept her eyes closed even after the fight was over. So with that Youko continued to walk back to his hideout.

"The legendary bandit: Youko Kurama. I have found you. Prepare to die," came a male's voice.

Youko stopped and looked to his left. There stood a human looking creature with dark green hair wearing a brown outfit. He held a rifle in his right hand.

"A Spirit World bounty hunter," Youko stated, showing no feelings.

"Got that right," said the man.

Youko continued to walk with the young girl still cradled in his left arm. The bounty hunter lifted up his rifle and took aim. Youko's ears perked up a bit as the hunter pulled back on the trigger.


	2. Chapter 2: Your Name

**muie5:** Here is the second chapter of this new story.

**Yusuke:** You are completely insane, aren't you?

**Kuwabara:** Leave her alone. He won't hurt you any more, muie5.

**muie5:** Eww! Get away from me. Where's Keiko? She's suppose to help me here.

**Yusuke:** I think she's down stairs in the kitchen cleaning up Youko's mess.

**muie5:** Oh, yeah! The little mishap in the kitchen.

**Hiei:** _muie5 doesn't own Yu Yu Hakusho_ cause if she did...

**muie5:** Hiei and Youko would belong to me and... **-starts daydreaming about if I did own Yu Yu Hakusho-**

**Hiei:** But since you never will**-under breath: Thank heavens.-** it doesn't matter.

**Recap: **

When Youko stood back up he felt the young girl shivering yet he continued to walk back to his hideout.

"The legendary bandit: Youko Kurama. I have found you," came a male's voice.

Youko stopped and looked to his left to find a man with dark green hair wearing a brown outfit holding a rifle in his right hand. Youko ignored him and continued to walk with the young girl still cradled in his left arm. Youko's ears perked up a bit as the hunter pulled back on the trigger.

**Chapter 2: Your Name**

At the last second Youko jumped into a tree to avoid the Spirit World bullet. The hunter looked up at him with a smug smile as Youko looked down at him with a bit of annoyance. The young girl looked down at the man attacking her savior.

"Don't you _dare_ walk away from me," ordered the hunter.

Youko put the girl down on the branch of the tree before jumping to the ground. The hunter looked up at the girl before dodging a rose whip attack. The hunter shot his gun again. Youko swiftly moved out of the way and lashed his rose whip. He caught the dodging hunter's left ankle causing the hunter to land flat on his face. Youko started to walk over to the hunter as the hunter turned onto his back. Once Youko was standing above him the hunter gave Youko another smug smile. He lifted up his gun and pointed it right at Youko's face.

"Die!" yelled the hunter as he pulled the trigger.

Youko moved just in time to miss the bullet. The hunter grinned as he watched the bullet fly though the air and straight for the tree where the young girl was standing. Youko noticed the hunter's grin and turned to see what was causing it.

"Get down!" Youko ordered, running towards the tree.

The girl watched the bullet with horror as it headed straight for her unable to move. She shut her eyes and turned her head as she waited for her end to come. A second later she felt a warm, wet substance hit her face. She opened her eyes skittishly and turned her head to see her handsome, silver haired savior huddled over her using his own body as a shield.

"Are you okay?" Youko asked, looking at the shaking young girl in front of him.

She nodded very slightly as she notice a bloody hole his chest.

"Good," he said.

Youko stood up and turned around to face the hunter. He pulled out another rose from his hair and held onto it tightly as he looked at the hunter. His anger subsided as he jumped to the ground. The hunter was now back on his feet. Youko quickly wrapped the whip around the hunter's abdomen and with one graceful tug the hunter was torn in two.

The young girl turned from the bloody sight of the dead bounty hunter. Youko looked up at her as he transformed his whip back into a rose. He placed the rose back in his hair as he landed on the branch. Youko held out his right hand to the young girl. She started to back up a bit not wanting to take his hand after seeing what he did. Youko looked into her eyes as she did the same to him, but she continued to back up till she fell off the branch. Youko jumped to the ground swiftly just in time to catch her in his arms.

"You are safe. Let us go," he reassured her as he started towards the hideout once more.

After a few minutes of walking, Youko started to slow down in his pace. The girl noticed this and looked up at him wondering what was happening this time. The first thing she noticed was that he started to sweat a bit. So she put her hands on his chest to get his attention. It worked and Youko looked down at her. What he got was a frown that held a very concerned expression behind it.

"That's fine," Youko said, sitting under a tree nearby.

The girl snuggled even more into his arms as she shut her eyes. In minutes she was fast asleep. Youko watched the young sleeping girl in his arms when she started to shiver as a gust of cold wind brushed over the two. Youko placed her on the ground before he transformed into his fox form. He positioned himself beside her so his body was a soft pillow for the girl's head and then covered her with his tails. He laid his hand on the girl's and fell into a shallow sleep.

After several hours, Youko heard a twig snap and lifted his head immediately. He looked around but saw nothing. When he was about to put his head back down he saw the girl's eyes open and looking at him.

"May," she said in a low, sweet voice.

Youko cocked his head to the right. She kept her head on his body and just looked at him.

"My name is May Hana," she said again.

Youko transformed back into his human-like form. He smiled at her and kept her covered with his tail even though he was laying on his right side. She snuggled up to his chest and looked up at him.

"Well, May Hana. My name is Youko Kurama," Youko introduced himself with a sly tone.

"You were correct. I never got to know my parents. My tribe exiled me when I was one. I've been through many families, but each one of them abandoned me. Everywhere I go I cause bad things to happen. All these attacks are my fault. I'm sorry I'm such a burden," she said, lowering her head.

Youko wrapped his arms around her small body. He placed his head on the ground and closed his eyes. She turned onto her other side so she was facing him.

"None of this is your fault. Get some sleep," Youko ordered.

May smiled at him and snuggled up next to him. Moments later May was fast asleep. Youko opened his eyes and watched the beautiful May sleep peacefully.

"No one will harm you again. You'll never have to look for another home. You'll never feel like this pain you feel is your fault," Youko thought, closing his eyes.

Both Youko and May were fast asleep with May in Youko's protective arms. Back at the hideout the sun started to peak over the horizon. The bandits were gathered outside of the gates of the hideout, talking and complaining.

"Yomi, Youko never returned last night," informed one of the demons.

"What should we do?" asked another.

"Continue with the heist," Yomi state with a bit of arrogance hanging in his voice.

"Find Youko," Kuronue said at the exact same time as Yomi.

"Youko would want this heist to continue even without him," Yomi stated.

"If Youko isn't here than something must have happened to him," Kuronue pointed out.

"He can take care of himself."

"We should still go find him."

"If we don't leave now we won't get another chance at this."

"What's more important: Youko or some stupid heist?"

"What are you all doing standing around? We have a heist to get to," came a cold voice.

Out of the trees came Youko. He carried a sleeping May cradled in his arms.

"I thought you were getting rid of that little thing," said one of the demons.

"Don't question me," Youko said very coldly.

"Youko, we have to get going," Kuronue stated, getting Youko's mind back onto the task at hand.

Youko laid May on the ground outside of the hideout before he lead his bandits into the forest. After a few minutes, May woke up and rubbed her eyes. She looked around before sitting up. The sun made the clouds a pink, orange, and purple.

"Youko?" May whispered very softly.

No answer came to the sweet voice that called out in the emptiness of the morning. May got to her feet and turned to the huge log gates. She walked over to them and sat with her back against the gates. She brought her knees up to her chest before looking out at the trees of the forest that surrounded her.

Five hours passed since the little May was left alone. The sun was now up in the sky making the birds chirp a happy tone. Everything was strangely calm.

"Youko, where are you?" May thought sadly as she lifted her head from her knees.

"What a great catch!" came a male's voice.

"Yeah! These have to be worth millions," said another.

May's ears perked up as the voices came closer. A smile came across her face when Youko came out of the trees. His bandits followed, each carrying an arm full of gold and silver objects. Youko noticed May sitting up against the gates. The others did not seem as excided to still have the brat there. May stood up as Youko walked over to her.

"How was your nap?" Youko whispered to her.

"Fine. Where did you go?" she asked sweetly.

"Don't worry about that. Let us go inside now," Youko said quietly.

He picked May up in his arms. The other bandits opened the gates and were walking in. Youko followed them in with the gates closing behind him. May looked around in awe. Inside was like a village. There were many huts and dirt roads. In the first few moments May noticed something that was a bit out of place.

"Youko, where are all the woman and children?" May asked.

"You are the only female and child. You are the first female to ever see this place. We do not allow woman to enter," Youko explained.

"Why?"

"They are too distracting."

May's ears lowered when he said that. She did not want to be a pest or 'distracting' to her savior. Youko noticed May's ears lower.

"May, this is your new home. You will learn how to fight and become a great thief. You won't be abandoned again," Youko promised.

They stopped in front of a huge dojo type building. Kuronue was waiting there as the other bandits walked around the small village. Yomi was standing next to Kuronue waiting as well.

"Kuronue, show May to her room," Youko ordered.

"You're not really considering letting her stay here, are you?" Yomi asked, lifting his hands up in protest.

"She'll get in the way," Kuronue added.

"Show May to her room," Youko ordered once again but more coldly this time.

"Yes, Youko," Kuronue gave up with a sigh.

Youko placed May on the wooden porch. Kuronue started to walk into the dojo with another soft sigh. Yomi gave May a disgusted look as she walked passed him and into the dojo.

Kuronue stopped at a white sliding door in the main hall. He slid it open and turned to May. May looked passed Kuronue and into the room. It had a window directly across the room from the door with a mat placed underneath it on the wooden floor. Other than that the room was completely bare.

"It don't know why Youko as taken a liking to you, but watch your step around here. Not everyone is thrilled about the idea of having a weak child as part of the bandits let alone a girl. The moment Youko finds you a nuisance is the moment you die," Kuronue explained before walking away.

Almost five years had passed since May first become part of the bandit family. Most of the bandits warmed up to her, though some still resented her. She started to open up more as her training went on. No one dared mess with her after what happened to the first bandit who tried to hurt May on her first night there. Youko held up to his promise and kept on protecting her secretly.

With each passing day, May become more and more attached to the demon that saved her from the darkness. Things kept attacking the bandits, but Youko never threw May out even though she kept insisting it was all because of her.

"Youko! Youko!" yelled an older May as she ran down the main hall of the dojo.

The demons that were in the hall at that moment moved out of the way quickly before they were knocked down. May skidded to a stop at a huge pair of white sliding doors. She slid them both open quickly and without hesitation.

"Youko!" May yelled again.

Youko looked at her from where he sat on the other side of the room. The other demon that sat in front of him looked over his shoulder.

This demon had pure black eyes, blond hair that come down to his shoulders, and he wore white and black pants with no shirt. He was very muscular and a bit scary looking. His two arms had sharp blades coming out of his skin. There were six blades on each arm.

"May!" a demon said angrily, gabbing her left arm.

The demon pushed her out of the way of the sliding doors. He bowed to the two before sliding the doors closed. After he shut the doors, he turned to May. She just looked at him a bit upset.

"You know better than to just barge into Youko's room like that! One of these days you'll get killed for not listening like you do now!" the demon stated.

May opened her mouth to retort but stopped before a sound exited. She remembered what Youko told her.

_The first night May stayed a demon crept into her room. He pulled her up by her small neck. She looked into her attacker's eyes as fear started to take over. _

"_I knew at least one of my men couldn't help himself. I told you that no one is to harm this young girl," Youko said coldly from where he stood in the doorway. _

_The bandit dropped May and turned to Youko. Youko threw a seed into the bandit's upper left part of his chest. He watched as the bandit's body went up in blood and flowers. The bandit fell to the floor as dead as dead could be. _

_May got to her feet and quickly ran over to Youko. She grabbed onto his pant leg while placing her head on his right leg. He looked down at her with a serious expression and then bent down to May's level. _

"_Your training starts tomorrow," Youko simply stated. _

_May looked into Youko's eyes. She saw something in his eyes for the first time. She saw worry behind a shroud of uncaring…unfeeling darkness. _

"_I won't always be around to protect you like I just did. You need to watch your back. Not all the bandits will accept you. If an opening to get rid of you shows itself they will take it. You have to be strong around here. Don't be cocky. Watch what you say and do," Youko explained._

The demon watched May shut her mouth and turn her head from him. He turned from her as well and walked down the hall. May sat on the wooden floor outside of Youko's room. She pulled her knees up to her chest, wrapped her cattail around her legs, and put her head on her knees.

A few hours passed before one of the doors slid open. The new demon walked out of the room. May looked up at him while he looked down at her. He smirked at her before walking down the hall to the outside. Youko came out and stood next to May. She stared at him as he stood there with his arms crossed and watching the demon head towards the gate.

"We need to talk," Youko said quiet enough for only May to hear him.

May and Youko walked around the village. They have been walking for several minutes but not a single word had been spoken. There was a sense of dread hanging over the two. May was about to say something but Youko beat her to it.

"You know not to barge in like that. I've told you that," Youko stated calmly.

"I know. I'm sorry, Youko," May said, lowering her head.

Youko looked at her. He noticed how much she has grown. Her hair was getting long and her white bandit's outfit showed off her developing body.

"Where have you been all morning?" Youko asked, lighting his tone of voice.

"I went to visit…umm…I was just training," May quickly answered.

"You don't need to lie. I think living for over 900 years makes me old enough to handle anything."

"I really _was_ training."

"But you also went to see Kuronue, didn't you?"

May looked up at Youko, but he did not return the glance. May's eyes become firry when she saw that Youko's eyes never faltered at the mention of Kuronue's name.

"Someone has to! Neither you nor anyone else seems to care! Even though he hated me in the beginning he helped you train me! He protected me and stuck up for me when you were gone!" May said firmly.

"May, showing your feelings so openly is a weakness. It clouds your judgment too much," Youko stated.

"Youko–"

"May, tomorrow we'll go see Kuronue together."

May lost what little anger started to grow to a smile. She jumped in front of him and start to walk backwards. Youko watched her as she kept talking.

"Youko, I learned a new trick. I can control water," May stated happily.

"Really?" Youko asked, calmly.

"Yep! I've been watering Kuronue's flowers with it."

"May, you know not to go out of the hideout. Someone might follow you back."

"I'm not a little, dumb, useless, weak child anymore. I'm older and stronger! Not to mention smarter, too."

Just as she got done saying that she fell onto her back. She grabbed onto the back of her head and cradled it. Youko stopped and looked down at her.

"I can tell that you are not weak anymore, but you are still a klutz," Youko stated.

"You act all cool, but I know you're not. I bet I could show you're not as calm as you always act," May thought.

May lied there without moving while Youko kept looking down at her. May held her breath so her chest would stop moving up and down. Youko bent down and picked May up bridal style.

"May, I'm not stupid. If you truly want to go onto the next life then tell me. I'll send you there myself," Youko said without thinking.

May opened her sad, glossy eyes. Youko then realized what he had said. May turned her head from him and did a back flip out of his arms.

"May, how would you feel if we take the day off?" Youko asked.

"Really!" May asked happily.

"Youko! Youko!" yelled a demon, running over to them.

"What is it?" Youko asked coldly.

"We got word about a great treasure," said a light blue-headed demon.

"Then let us map it out," Youko said, turning his full attention to the bandit.

May lowered her head and ears while turning her back to the two. With one last glance back at Youko she walked away. Youko watched May walk back to the dojo as the bandit started to give him the details of this new discovery.

"He never promised to always have time for me," May told herself, sliding her door shut.

A knock was heard on May's door as soon as she sat on her window seal. Another one came as soon as no answer was heard from within. May just let her legs hang out the window as she watched the sun start to go down.

She heard the door slid open and some foot steps after that. The door slid shut and then silence. May did not turn around to see who it was. Youko stood behind her, also watching the sun start to set.

"May–"

"It is okay, Youko. You are busy. I get it," May interrupted him.

"Early in the morning we are going to go see Kuronue. That is one promise I won't break," Youko said, looking at her.

"You swear on your life?"

"I promise on my life and on the life of the one dearest to me."

May smiled at him before turning her attention back to the sunset. Youko started to walk back towards the door.

"Youko, you won't ever leave me, will you?" May asked, turning around on the window seal.

"Of course, I won't," he answered.

"Thank you."

Youko saw the innocent smile shine in the light of the sunset. The wind blew through the window and played with May's beautiful, colorful hair.

"I have something for you," Youko said, sliding the door open.

"Really? What is it?" May asked, getting off the seal.

"You'll have to wait till tomorrow morning."

"That's not fair!"

"Never said it would be."

Youko slid the door close as May started to get ready to go to bed. Youko walked to the room next to hers and slid open one of the doors.

A few minutes before the sun started to rise May slid open her door quietly and tiptoed over to Youko's room. She slid open the door quietly and walked in silently. She walked over to the sleeping kitsune with all the stealth she had learned over the years. She got ready to jump on him when the moment her feet left the floor Youko sat up. May got caught in Youko's arms within seconds.

"You cheated, Youko," May said in a harsh whisper.

"You should not have snuck up on a fox," Youko whispered.

"Are you ready to go?"

"This early?"

"You did not give a time."

Youko got to his feet with May still in his arms. May smiled at him as he walked over to his open window. He put his right foot on the window seal and with one graceful push they were out the window.

"Why didn't you take the door?" May asked.

"Easier this way," Youko answered, running threw the forest.

Within minutes they were in a clearing surrounded by a very thick area of trees. Youko put May down. As soon as her feet hit the ground, May ran over to a small bolder with Youko walking behind her. There in front of them were multicolored wild flowers. May knelt before the rock and pulled out some weeds that grew among the flowers.

"Good morning, Kuronue. I hope you slept well. I brought Youko with me today," May said, sitting on her heels while looking at the rock.

"Kuronue," Youko thought sadly.

Youko and May stayed quiet for several minutes. The sun started to come up as they sat in the stillness of the morning. May looked back at Youko to see his eyes blank…void of any emotion.

"Youko, do you want to see my new skill?" May asked, turning all the way around to him.

Youko looked down at her with the same blank look. May got to her feet as he snapped back into reality. May smiled at him with that innocent smile. She had never seen that look in his eyes and it scared her.

"Sure," he answered.

May walked over to a small spring, bent down, and took a handful of water. She turned to Youko and showed the water in her hand to him. Youko watched on as she froze the water.

"How did you know you could do this?" Youko asked.

"I found out a few days ago. I've been coming here every day to sharpen this new skill. I can freeze the water and make it move while still a liquid," May explained, dropping the frozen water.

Youko watched as it turned into liquid once again. May walked over to his side happily. He put his left hand on her head and ruffled her hair.

"That's great. Are you ready for your gift?" Youko asked.

"Yeah!" May yelled with a jump.

Youko knelt on his right knee and pulled something out of his pocket. He held it in his fist while May anxiously waited for him to give her the gift.

"This is very special to me so take care of it," Youko explained.

"Okay! Okay! What is it?" May asked, excitedly.

Youko opened his fist. May's eyes glittered with awe. There in Youko's palm was a diamond ponytail holder. On it was a beautiful ruby flower.

"It's beautiful!" May exclaimed.

"I've noticed that on heists your hair gets in your way. This should help with that problem," Youko explained, putting May's mid-back length hair back with the ponytail holder.

May walked over to the water and looked at the gift. Youko smiled to himself as he watched May touch the ponytail holder gently, as if it would break if she put too much pressure on it. May whirled around to Youko with a content expression.

"He's smiling. For the first time, he's actually smiling," May thought.

Just as May started to walk back over to Youko, a shout rang out.


	3. Chapter 3: Cry Wolf

**muie5:** Well A New Chapter. Now I like to say that Youko is acting a little OOC but this is my story and I said that it was an AU so no complaints.

**Kurama:** Please hurry.

**muie5:** I am.

**Yusuke:** No, you're not.

**muie5:** Why are you here?

**Yusuke:** Well...I'm not sure. I just thought you might have pizza.

**muie5:** Kuwabara, are you done reading my e-mails? **-no answer- -looks around-** Where did he go? Yusuke, please don't eat my cookie. YUSUKE!

**Kurama:** _muie5 does not own Yu Yu Hakusho._

**Recap:**

"Youko, do you want to see my new skill?" May asked, turning all the way around to him.

"Sure," he answered.

May walked over to a small spring, bent down and took a handful of water. Youko watched as the water froze.

"That's great. Are you ready for your gift?" Youko asked.

"Yeah!" May yelled with a jump.

Youko pulled something out of his pocket and held it in his fist while May anxiously waited for him to give her the gift.

"This is very special to me so take care of it," Youko explained, opening his fist to show a diamond ponytail holder with a beautiful ruby flower.

Youko put May's mid-back length hair back with the ponytail holder. She walked over to the water and looked at the gift. May whirled around to Youko with a content expression.

"He's smiling. For the first time, he's smiling," May thought.

Just as May started to walk back over to Youko, a shout rang out.

**Chapter 3: Cry Wolf**

May stopped dead in her tracks as Youko put his hands to his lower abdomen.

"Youko?" May asked quietly, taking a step towards him.

"Get back!" Youko growled at May.

"Youko, you're hurt."

"I said get back!" Youko growled again at her with his teeth bared.

May took a step back as some noise was heard from the brush.

"I have to get out of here. If this hunter finds May he won't hesitate to kill her," Youko thought, staring at the brush.

Youko turned around and started to run. May instinctually started to follow him.

"Youko! Wait for me!" May called out, running after him.

"May! Don't follow me! Go back to the hideout! I'll make sure he doesn't follow you!" Youko ordered.

"What about you?" May asked, still running after him.

"I'll meet you back there! Now go!" Youko ordered again.

May stopped following Youko after that. A blur ran passed her and went after her savior. With great hesitation May started to run back towards the hideout.

"Youko, I'll get some back up," May thought, running through the forest.

Another shot rang out through the forest. Youko managed to dodge this one and kept running. The hunter followed suit. Youko started to pull out his rose when a bullet went through the upper right part of his chest.

He went on with transforming his rose despite the pain. Youko kept running through the forest with the hunter on his tail. When Youko was about to slash the hunter a bullet grazed passed his left ear.

"This hunter isn't like the other. This one aims to get its target without fooling around. I have to finish this," Youko thought.

He jumped onto a tree branch that was high enough for him to have a bird's eye view of the surrounding. He whipped the rose whip at the shadowed hunter in the brush below. At the same time May ran to the hideout and banged on the gate with all her strength.

"He needs help! Help!" May yelled while continuing to bang on the gate with both of her fists.

One of the bandits opened the gate and almost got knocked down by May running passed him. She did not stop running till she got to the middle of the village. The bandits did not pay any attention to her.

"Youko needs help! He's hurt!" May yelled with tears threatening to coming to the surface.

"May, stop messing around. We're trying to get ready for a heist," ordered one of the bandits.

"I'm not joking. Youko is in serious trouble!" May said, lifting her arms to add emphasis to her claim.

"We don't have time for this, brat," another bandit snapped.

"Fine! If you won't help Youko, I will!" May snarled at them as she ran out of the hideout just as fast as she had entered.

Youko made a wall of vines grow while he kept running. His beautiful white outfit was now stained with his own blood. When he looked back the hunter cut through the vines.

"This guy doesn't give up! I don't know how long I can keep going," Youko thought, barely dodging another bullet.

A few more minutes passed with shooting, dodging, and slashing, a sudden shot of water came out of nowhere. Youko stopped on a tree branch to look down at the hunter frozen in ice.

"May?" Youko asked quietly.

May walked out of the shadows with an enraged expression upon her face. Youko looked down at May with his emotionless expression as May walked over to the hunter.

"Don't you _ever_ touch my Youko again!" May threatened.

"May, I told you to go back to the hideout," Youko stated coldly.

"I did."

The hunter's fingers started to move. May did not notice this but Youko did. May continued to talk while Youko watched the hunter start to break out of his ice containment.

"May, get out of here now," Youko ordered.

"I'm not leaving you, Youko," May protested.

The hunter broke out of the ice and grabbed May's neck. Youko jumped off the branch and brought down his rose whip on the hunter's arm. The hunter dropped May to save his own arm. May fell onto her knees, gasping for air. The hunter shot at May, but Youko jumped in the way of the bullet and picked May up. Blood splashed onto May's shocked face.

"When I put you down I want you to run as fast as you can back to the hideout. I don't want you to look back until you are in the hideout. Don't come looking for me. I'll come back to the hideout as soon as I can," Youko ordered.

"I'm not leaving you," May argued.

Another shot was heard, but Youko dodged this one. The hunter shot his gun again. Youko dodged but the bullet grazed his leg.

"May, do as I say."

"Promise you'll come back soon?"

"I promise," Youko reassured her while putting her back on the ground.

May took a few steps back while she looked at her blood soaked savior. A tear rolled down her left cheek, which mixed with Youko's blood that was splashed on her face.

"Don't cry…I don't want you to be hurt. I'm sorry, May," Youko thought, turning to face the hunter.

May let another tear run down her cheek before turning around. She took off through the forest as fast as her legs could carry her. Youko took off in the opposite direction with the hunter on his tail.

May transformed into her cat form and made it to the hideout within a few minutes. It did not seem that short since May was lost in her own thoughts the entire time she was running. When she reached the gates she transformed back to her human form as the gates opened. The upset May walked in with a blank stare and ran passed everyone straight into the dojo.

May shut her door and silent whimpers were heard. She sat on her window seal looking out at the sky. Tears streamed down her face like rivers down a mountain. When May wiped the tears away she notice there was now blood on her hands. This cause her to completely break down.

A few days passed without a sign or even a message from Youko. May never left her spot on her window seal the whole time. The bandits started to forget about their leader slowly but surely.

"Youko, today is the day I came to live with you. Remember? This day exactly five years ago," May thought as she stared out the window at the stars in the midnight sky.

The door slid open and then shut. May turned to see several bandits surrounding her. May's eyes grew wide as two of them grabbed her arms and forced her to the ground. The others surrounded her with evil chuckles.

"No! YOUKO! Help!" May cried out.

Her cry echoed through the entire village and the forest that surrounded it.

The sun started to rise as the bandits dragged May out into the dirt street in front of the dojo. They threw her weak, battered body wrapped in her tattered garments to the ground. The other bandits from the village surrounded her.

They started to kick and cut her with their weapons. They spent an hour or more beating May to a bloody pulp. One of the bandits kicked her in the side with all his strength. Blood poured from the wounds on her face and all over her body. They continued to cause more pain to her even though she was almost dead as it was.

"Youko, help me. Youko, what about your promise? I need you!" May thought with desperation.

May blacked out from the pain, but the bandits continued to beat her ruthlessly. Something snapped deep inside May. She stood up clumsily and looked at her attackers. A small flame formed in her right hand and without any misgivings she blew the fire at the bandits. It successfully set fire to five of them. Their bodies fell to the ground, charred and dead.

The others backed away from the girl. She continued to kill the bandits one by one. Several of the huts caught on fire during this attack of revenge. A few minutes later the entire village was up in flames. May walked out of the village with a smug grin on her face. She walked a few feet into the forest before collapsing onto the ground.

As the sun was high in the sky May started to twitch. She sat up quickly and saw the burned down village. She looked at her hands and then at her blood soaked body. It was hard for her to even think about leaving her home, but she stood up and limped deeper into the forest. She could not do anything about her home now and staying would just be even worse.

May finally made it to the clearing where Kuronue was buried and walked over to the small spring. She took off her blood soaked, ripped garments before getting washed up. After she was done getting all the dried blood off, she stared into the water. The sun hit the diamonds on the hair tie in her hair. May took it out and held it her hands gently. She cupped it in her hands and brought it up to her heart while lowering her head. Tears streamed down her cheeks and no matter how much she tried to stop them they just kept coming.

**-15 Years Later-**

The woman dodged the attack from Hiei and skidded to a stop a few feet from the four boys.

"Who are you? And what do you want?" Kuwabara asked.

"My name? People call me 'Beautiful Death' and I'm here to kill the red head," the woman answered.

"Why?" Yusuke asked.

"My boss just wants him dead. I have no business with the rest of you."

Again the woman ran at Kurama with her kunai knife out. Kurama blocked it with his rose whip again. Yusuke shot his spirit gun which caused her gave up her attack on Kurama to dodge it. The three companions of Kurama started to attack Beautiful Death.

All of a sudden the sun caught a beautiful ruby flower that was on her diamond hair tie. Kurama noticed it as she ran at him. Their weapons clashed once again, but this time Kurama wrapped the end of the rose whip around the woman's ankle. Beautiful Death looked into his eyes to try and find a weakness.

"May?" asked a cold voice inside Kurama's head.

"Youko?" Kurama asked his demon half.

"Sorry for this Shuichi."

Kurama's hair started to turn silver, he grew silver fox ears and a matching tail, his eyes started to turn gold, and his cloths turned into white garments.

The woman's eyes started to widen as the transformation took place. The others watched, as the transformation from Shuichi to Youko was finishing up. Beautiful Death jumped back, but the whip wrapped around her ankle made her fall to the ground in mid-jump. She landed hard on her back when she hit the ground. Youko started to walk over to the woman who was still on her back cradling her head. He looked down at her with a frown as soon as he was standing over her.

"I can tell you are not weak anymore but you are still a klutz," Youko stated calmly.

"It's you," Beautiful Death said loud enough for only Youko to hear.

Youko gave her a small smile. Beautiful Death jumped up and landed a foot or so away from Youko. She took out another kunai knife and started to attack Youko. Yet he dodged each attack gracefully while still allowing her to attack him as much as she wanted. The others started to join in when Beautiful Death threw a kunai knife at them.

"Stay out of this," Youko ordered.

"No way! We're in this together," Kuwabara said.

"This seems to be personal. Leave him be," Hiei stated.

Youko grabbed Beautiful Death's left wrist, but she kept attacking with her right. Youko just kept moving the parts of his body he needed to.

"I hate you! I hate you, Youko!" Beautiful Death yelled.

Youko knocked the kunai knife out of her hand. So she punched him in the gut and continued to punch him in the face. Nothing was going to stop her from attacking him, even if she had to do it without a weapon.

"You abandoned me! You broke your promise! You allowed them to do what they did to me! YOU TRATOR!" Beautiful Death yelled at him.

Youko let go of her left wrist and continued to stand still. No matter how many times she punched him, he continued to look straight into her eyes. Her punches started to become weaker and weaker. Tears rolled down her cheeks as her punches stopped completely. Youko kept looking at her even after she stopped her onslaught of punches. Beautiful Death's watery eyes looked into Youko's golden ones. She collapsed into Youko's chest. Youko started to stroke her hair with his right hand and held her with his left. She just continued crying into his chest as she wrapped her arms around Youko's waist.

"I'm sorry. I…you…" Beautiful Death tripped over her words.

"It's okay, May. It's okay," Youko said, stroking her hair.

The others looked on confused. Youko did not look up at them, he was more concerned with the girl in his arms. May continued to cry into Youko's chest.

"Who's this?" Yusuke asked, interrupting them.

May stopped crying and whipped her tears way. She looked back at the other three bystanders. She then let go of Youko and stood up straight. Youko looked her over twice.

"You are not the little demon I use to know," Youko stated.

"I've grown…a lot. You haven't changed one bit though. You're still the same demon that I remember," May stated with a small smile in her voice.

"Still have no idea who you are," Yusuke said again, trying to get some answers.

May turned to them with a smile and Youko looked at the three as well.

"My real name is May Hana," May answered.

"How do you two know each other?" Kuwabara asked.

"Youko saved me from his bandits' years ago," May turned back to Youko with a sad expression, "Where did you go? You promised you would be back at the hideout. I waited for you."

"I had to lay low and when I went to steal again the hunter got me," Youko explained.

"Youko, that red head is your other form, isn't it?"

"Yes."

"Sorry to break this up, but Koenma sent us to capture this demon," Yusuke reminded them.

"And I have been given orders to kill your red headed self," May added sadly.

"Can't we just forget this one?" Kuwabara asked, turning to Yusuke.

"Without Shuichi I won't be able to live any longer," Youko stated to May.

"So we are enemies. Better give me your best fight then," May warned, turning to Youko with a smile.


	4. Chapter 4: Fight With The Heart

**muie5:** I love this chapter. It's sad but cute. Hope you all enjoy.

**Kurama:** Are you done with the other stuff you have to do?

**muie5:** Yeah...Okay. So I don't own

**Yusuke:** That is the cheapest way to avoid answering a question.

**muie5:** Like I was saying! _I don't own YYH just May, Tenshi, and Kori-Ryu_

**Recap:**

"You abandoned me! You broke your promise! You allowed them to do what they did to me! YOU TRATOR!" Beautiful Death yelled at him as she continued to punch Youko.

Soon her punches started to become weaker and weaker as tears rolled down her cheeks. It did not take long for her to collapse into Youko's chest. Youko started to stroke her hair with his right hand and held her with his left. She just continued crying into his chest as she wrapped her arms around Youko's waist.

"It's okay, May. It's okay," Youko said, stroking her hair.

"Who's this?" Yusuke asked, interrupting them.

"My real name is May Hana," May answered.

"How do you two know each other?" Kuwabara asked.

"Youko saved me from his bandits' years ago," May turned back to Youko with a sad expression, "Where did you go? You promised you would be back at the hideout. I waited for you."

"I had to lay low and when I went to steal again the hunter got me," Youko explained.

"Youko, that red head is your other form, isn't it?"

"Yes."

"So we are enemies. Better give me your best fight then," May warned, turning to Youko with a smile.

**Chapter 4: Fight With The Heart**

"Youko, she wants to kill me so we are switching," Shuichi ordered in Youko's head.

"No! I'm fighting her," Youko ordered his other self.

"She means a lot to you, doesn't she? Very well I'll stay out of this fight. Just remember if you die there is not second chance."

"I have found out through the years that I have many new powers. You better be on your toes at all times. All of you," May warned, looking at everyone.

"They'll stay out of this fight. It's just you and me," Youko stated.

"Fine with me. Let's get to it."

May placed her right foot in front of her left and put her left hand in front of her as Youko pulled out a rose from his silver hair.

May gave a slight smile before she gave her old savior some advice, "You're plants won't work in this fight."

Youko transformed his rose into his famous Rose Whip. He immediately whipped it at May. That did not effect May at all; she dodged before grabbing the middle of the rose whip. As a result of doing so blood trickled down May's arm from the wound on her right hand caused by the thorn that now punctured her skin. Youko pulled the Rose Whip back to him and May allowed the thorn to continue its damage as it got ripped out of her tightly gripped hand.

"What is she planning?" Youko thought to himself.

"Ready for the fun?" May asked, making a fist with her right hand.

Drops of blood fell to the ground as May closed her eyes. Youko pulled out a seed from his hair and held it in his fist. He, too, closed his eyes.

A few moments later they simultaneously opened their eyes. May blew a ball of fire into her right hand. The blood started to mix in with the fire, making the color turn into a dark purple. Youko let several razor-sharp vines fly through the air and towards May.

"What is he thinking? I can kill his plants easily with my power. What is his plan?" May thought, watching the vines close in on her.

May put her left hand over the top of the fireball causing it grow another inch and a half. Once that was finished she threw it at the plants that were a few inches from her. Youko smirked as May's fireball only singed the vines' edges.

"What's this?" May gasped out of surprise.

May jumped to the right in an attempt to dodge the vines. When she landed a few feet away a jolt of pain went to her brain from the nerves in her left leg. She looked down to inspect what caused this sudden pain only to see one of the razor-sharp vines went through her lower left leg.

"I strengthened these vines with my own ki. You won't be able to burn them so easily," Youko explained to the obviously confused May.

May growled at Youko before getting down on her right knee. With one swift pull on the vine, blood splattered all around her. She dropped the blood soaked vine onto the ground. Blood continued to flow freely from the hole in her lower left leg.

"If I don't kill her with my plants, blood loss with be her undoing," Youko thought, watching May stand once more.

"I guess I underestimated you. I won't do it again. I promise you that," May stated, smiling at Youko.

May covered the front part of the wound with her right hand and the back part with her left. Youko watched as May's hands started to glow a light teal. After a moment May took her hands off her leg. Youko's eyes widened when he saw what May actually did.

"What are you thinking?" Youko asked, trying to not yell at her.

May grinned at her old savior. The blood that was once flowing from her open wound was now frozen. The internal veins and organs were frozen as well. Small ice particles formed around the wound itself.

"It's a quick fix while in a battle. It will keep me from bleeding to death," May explained unnervingly calm for what she just did to herself.

"Doing that will kill you as well," Youko warned, keeping his worry inside.

"Well I wouldn't have to do this if you would let me kill you. But if you did than you wouldn't be the fox demon I look up to."

"I thought you were going to give me your best. With your leg frozen you will not be able to dodge quickly enough."

"Youko, I've gotten use to doing this. Since you left I've had to defend myself all alone."

May bent down to plucked a blade of grass from the ground. Youko watched May intently as she got back up with the small blade of grass. May smiled as the grass blade grew to at least three feet long and start to glow a dark black.

"She can control plants as well," Youko thought, impressed at how much May as learned in the fifteen years since they last saw each other.

"As, I am sure, you can tell I can also control plants. It's my way of honoring you, but, of course, I can't control them as well as you can. I can also control some darkness," May explained some of the powers she now possessed.

"Makes it more interesting this way," Youko stated.

Youko willed some vines to wrap around his right arm and it started to grow into a point away from his hand. May grinned, as she knew this was going to be a sword fight. She liked being up close and personal in her battles. It is how she lived for so long.

May ran full speed towards Youko, ready to attack. Youko stood still, his vine sword at his side. May brought her sword above her left shoulder. Directly after she swung her sword straight at Youko's throat. Youko, at the last second, brought his sword up to block May's attack. May growled when she realized Youko was using little to no energy to keep her sword at bay.

"He's toying with me!" May growled in her mind.

"This is a joke. May is clearly no match for Youko," Hiei stated from the sidelines.

May's ears perked up before she showed her sharp fangs. Youko watched as May jumped back a few feet. It was obvious to him that she was not interested in their fight at the moment. May turned her full attention to Hiei. Youko stood there as to allow her to get her anger out before the fight continued once again.

"I'd like to see you do better! Youko is way stronger than any of you! So shut up and let me fight in peace!" May ordered fiercely.

Youko gave an almost invisible smirk. He would never admit it, but he was very proud of May. He watched with great pride and happiness as May and the other three exchanged a few more words.

"Are you sure you want to fight her, Youko?" Shuichi asked, noticing his demon side's change in attitude.

"Of course, I do! This is just like every other fight for my life," Youko responded.

"But she's not like every other enemy. You can't kill her."

Youko let some of his energy escape. May turned her attention back to him with a sweet smile. The others turned their attention to the fox spirit as well.

"Sorry. I got side tracked again," May apologized sweetly.

May's smile withered till it was quickly replaced with a serious frown. She held up her grass blade and was ready to charge Youko once again. Youko allowed his vine sword to diminish till it was completely gone.

"What is he planning now?" May thought as she watched him reach for his hair again.

Youko pulled out a small red seed. May's gaze fell upon the seed he held in his hand. Fear raced across her face. She knew what he was planning and she knew if she did not do something fast she was going to die. May ran at Youko with less than impressive speed. She tried to cut Youko's right hand off, but tripped and fell to the ground before she even reached her target. At this point she started to feel the full affect of freezing her leg. She propped up the upper half of her body with her left arm.

"My wound has never been frozen for this long in any of my prior battles. My internal organs are starting to slow down significantly. If I don't end this soon I'll die," May thought as the anxiety started to multiply.

"We have to hurry and heal her. If we don't she'll die," Shuichi chimed in with the obvious thought to anyone else.

"Shut up already!" Youko snapped at his human half.

Youko closed his left palm as it started to glow a dark shade of red. May watched from where she was lying on the ground. It took all of her strength to lift herself to her knees as several shocks of pain went though her entire being. She was able to leap out of the way of the sharp vines that were flying at her. All she could manage to do was land on her right side a few feet away.

"Impressive. I'm surprised she could even move let alone dodge that quickly," Youko thought with some delight showing.

May got to her feet with immense difficulty. She struggled just to keep herself on her feet. Youko took out another seed and threw it straight at May's throat without a second thought. May easily caught the seed and held it tightly in her right hand. She brought her lowered head up to glare at Youko.

Her normally calm blue eyes now exhibited complete and utter hatred. She allowed her facial expression to convert to one that was dark. Youko watched as she allowed her full feelings to take over.

"How dare you! Do you find me that weak?" May growled, tightening her grip on the seed.

Youko let a smirk creep onto his lips. May's anger diminished as Youko's playful eyes turned cold. May than realized what was going on. She quickly opened her right hand so the seed would fall to the ground.

"Too late," Youko stated to his adversary.

And he was right. In the middle of May's hand, where her wound was from the rose whip, was where the seed had already taken root. Vines started to engulf her entire hand. Even though May desperately started to claw at the vines, they kept growing. Her entire arm was covered in mere moments. The vines wrapped around her waist and then her legs. The vines began to get farther apart when wrapping around the rest of her body, but they were strong. Blood started to flow from where the vines started to burrow into her body. May tried to freeze them from the inside out but it did not work. She even tried to burn them. All her attempts to free herself failed.

"It hurts…It burns…" May thought weakly.

May looked up from the vines to Youko. He stood there with that cold stare that May only knew him to give to his most horrible enemies. It broke May's heart to see that stare being directed towards her. Even though she wanted to shed the tears that had built up in her eyes she knew she could not.

"If I'm going to die, then I'm going to show my Youko how strong I am. I will not cry," May decided on.

"How can you just stand there and watch her die?" Shuichi asked, sounding angry with his other half.

Youko did not answer as he watched May fall to her knees and then slowly to the ground. Blood surrounded her frail form on the grassy area they were in. With the last ounce of her energy, May lifted her head to get one final glimpse of the one she always wanted to be with.

**_-Flashback-_**

_A seven year old May came limping into the bandits' hideout. Her left arm was broken, a slash went from the upper right part of her forehead to her lower left chin, and her left eye was surely going to be black in the morning. A trail of blood followed her from the various cuts all over her body. Several demons watched her limp her way to the dojo. They whispered various things to each other, but May ignored the gossiping bandits. She continued towards the dojo, eyes completely blank._

_-Inside the Dojo-_

_Youko was in his room having his seventh meeting of the day. Even though he was the one that scheduled the meetings, he wished he did not plan so many for the day. He felt like it was the hundredth meeting of the day, but he knew there were several more to come before the day was done._

_Two bandits were bickering outside Youko's bedroom door, which had a conference room adjacent to it. Kuronue was there as well but he was not fighting with the two. _

"_If we don't tell him you know how mad he'll get," said a demon with long blond hair and piercing brown eyes._

"_I'm not going to get my head torn off to tell him about that stupid brat!" stated the other demon that had short, light blue hair and even lighter blue eyes._

"_Get out of the way then," Kuronue ordered, forcefully pushing the two bandits aside._

_Kuronue slid open the right of the two sliding doors that led to the conference room. A demon with black eyes, dark blue hair, and a scar running from an inch above his left eye brow to about three inches under his left eye was sitting on royal blue cushions in front of a table in the middle of the room. Youko was facing the doors so only the unknown demon had to turn to see who was interrupting their meeting._

"_Sorry to interrupt, but May is passed out in the middle of the village," Kuronue explained, leaning up against the right part of the doorframe._

_Youko gave Kuronue a cold glare that Kuronue knew was used to say 'leave'. Kuronue just put his left foot up on the doorframe and crossed his arms in front of himself._

"_Did I mention she is bleeding severely as well? She sure is a mess of blood and flesh," Kuronue elaborated on his prior explanation._

_Youko got to his feet before swiftly, but coolly, exiting the conversance room. Kuronue grinned at the new demon before putting his left foot back on the wooden floor and turned towards the demon._

"_The meeting is officially over. Follow me," Kuronue ordered._

_Youko walked to where a crowd of bandits was gathered. He moved several bandits, forcefully, to the side. The rest allowed their leader through without any trouble. In the middle of the crowd was an unconscious May. She was severely bleeding all over the dirt road of the hideout just like Kuronue stated._

"_What happened here?" Youko asked in the mist of all the whispering bandits._

_Kuronue came walking up beside Youko, arms crossed in front of himself. Youko watched as all the bandits fell silent. Kuronue bent down and picked May up bridal style. This started up a few more whispers from the bandits._

"_Get ready for the heist tonight," Kuronue ordered, walking back towards the dojo._

_Youko walked beside Kuronue back to the dojo. He never looked at Kuronue or May as they were walking. When they got into the empty dojo, Kuronue looked towards Youko but he did not return the glance. Kuronue gently shoved May into Youko's arms._

"_Everyone is gone so you can stop acting like you don't care," Kuronue stated to his friend._

_Youko looked down at the mangled May in his arms. He nodded at his closest friend without a word. They walked down the main hall with May protectively in Youko's arms._

_-Five Hours Later-_

_May started to come to her senses. She noticed right away that she could not move her left arm at all and she had a splitting headache. Next she noticed that she was no longer lying on the cold, hard, dirt ground but on a soft, warm cot. Even though she knew it was going to make her headache worse, she slowly opened her eyes. She sat up and noticed her left arm was in a sling and she was back in her room. Just then her door slid open and Kuronue came walking in. After sliding the door shut he noticed May was awake. He smiled at her as May was fully waking up._

"_Hey, Youko. Sleeping beauty is awake," Kuronue stated calmly._

_May looked around for a moment before her eyes fell upon Youko. He was sitting in the window seal of her room with his back facing her. His right leg was propped up on the very edge of the seal while his left leg hung outside._

"_He must be mad at me," May thought as she watched Youko sit on her window seal._

_Youko turned his head from the setting sun to gaze at May. He did not wear a smile or even a warm expression to give to little May. Kuronue was now standing next to May so he could face his friend._

"_May, you have already ruined my reputation with the bandits and now you're disobeying the rules," Youko stated, coolly._

"_I'm sorry, Youko. I didn't mean to cause trouble," May answered, lowering her head, ears, and tail._

"_What happened anyways?" Kuronue asked, looking down at May._

"_I went out to do some scouting for Tenshi and Kori-Ryu."_

_Youko and Kuronue's eyes grew cold when they heard Kori-Ryu's name. They knew he resented May for being allowed to stay in the bandit's hideout. It would not have surprised them if he sent someone to kill her._

"_Youko, Tenshi said that Kori-Ryu told him that you are planning to kill me if I do something like this again…If I come back here all beat up…He said you were going to kill me with your own two hands," May said, holding back the tears that threaten to fall if she let her guard down._

_Youko turned all the way around. Kuronue looked up at Youko. He knew Youko too well to be surprised at what he said next._

"_May, I would never kill you. I am disappointed that you would second guess what I promised you," Youko answered May's unasked question._

_May gave Youko a sad smile. Kuronue, all the sudden, hit May really hard in the back of her head. Her head jerked forward enough that her quarter back length hair fell into her face. Her hands automatically cradled the back of her head. May turned her gaze towards Kuronue with her hands still rubbing the back of her head._

"_What in the three worlds of Makai was that for, Kuro!" May ordered an answer._

"_You are such a baka! You're __way__ too inexperienced to go out scouting by yourself! What if you died? Youko wouldn't stop crying for weeks! Maybe months! Even years!" Kuronue answered louder than need be._

"_Kuro, if __you__ don't want to die than I suggest you shut up!" Youko growled._

_May and Kuronue tried to hold in their laughs enough so no one else could hear but the three demons in the room. Youko kept his cool even though he wanted nothing more than to strike the both of them._

"_Youko, that's like saying…" Kuronue started to say._

"_If you want to keep your face in one piece, I suggest you shut up," May and Kuronue said in unison._

_May and Kuronue looked at each other before busting out laughing. Youko lightened his expression. He could not help it, no one could help but lightening up a bit after that stupid comment._

"_Do you guys plan these stupid saying or are you both on the lower end of the wave lengths?" Youko asked._

"_Yeah, Youko, that's exactly what we do," May sarcastically stated._

"_We stay up all night in each other's rooms coming up with these sayings," Kuronue added, also sarcastically._

_After that was said, silence fell over the room. They all looked at each other with blank stares, and after a few seconds they all burst out laughing._

**_-End-_**

May's head fell to the ground, eyes closed. Her once tense body was now completely limp. Youko just stood there as May's body started to lose some of its color.

"Youko! How could you not even be by her side as she died?" Shuichi started out with.

Youko did not hear his other half. He did not even hear Kuwabara yelling at him from where he stood on the sidelines. Everything was silent to the legendary bandit. After a moment Youko, to Yusuke and Kuwabara's surprise, started to walk over to where May's body rested on the blood-soaked ground. Yusuke and Kuwabara were starting to do the same before Hiei put out his left arm to stop them.

"Not just yet. He has something to do," Hiei explained, watching Youko stop by May's head.

Youko looked down at May with a cold gaze. He then looked at the mass of trees that she first came out of. The other three watched Youko with curiosity. Youko kept his calm as he stood by May's lifeless body.

"She's dead. Now leave before you end up the same way," Youko snarled lowly.

"I think he finally lost it. There's nobody there," Kuwabara stated once more without a clue on what was actually going on.

As Youko got done saying his threat, a mysterious energy appeared for a millisecond before disappearing. Yusuke looked over at the forest. Hiei and Kuwabara did the same but only Hiei and Yusuke knew what that energy was.

"A spy?" Yusuke asked to no one particular.

Hiei gave a slight nod to answer Yusuke's question. "Youko knew the spy was there the entire time," Hiei explained.

Youko bent down next to May's right side. He looked at May's usually energetic face that was now pale. Youko was surprised when he noticed that May had a smile gracing her lifeless expression. He gathered her cold, pale, limp body into his arms. He got to his feet slowly with May in his arms bridal style.

**_-Youko's POV-_**

_I was in the rose garden behind the dojo. Kuronue was sitting, back against a wooden beam, on the porch. He always comes out here when I do my daily tending of my roses. No one bothers me when I tend my roses so he just sits there and takes a nap. _

_I was tending to a dying rose when May came running onto the porch. She looked at the now awake Kuronue. He gave her a cold glare but she just ignored him. She held her left hand tightly to her chest as she slowly walked passed Kuronue. She has only been here two days so she still had many enemies. Even my best friend was being difficult._

"_Yes, May?" I asked, watching May side-step past Kuronue._

_When she got beyond Kuronue, she made a mad dash over to me. She grabbed onto my right pant leg with her right hand and hid behind my legs. I knew she was not going to say anything with Kuronue around. For the past two days the only one she talked to was me. I understood why though. _

_I bent down so I was eye level to her. In her eyes were unshed tears. I smiled at her without even realizing it. The only one who ever saw me smile was Kuronue, now I was smiling at this new demon child._

"_What is it, May?" I asked softly._

_May burst into tears without warning. Kuronue sat up and put his arms across his lap. I stroked her hair, thinking it would calm her down, but I was new to this comforting thing. She continued to cry for a few more moments._

"_What's wrong, May?" I asked again, hiding the concern I had._

"_My…my… I cut my finger. It really, really hurts," May said in between sobs._

_Just as she got done answering my question I heard Kuronue burst out laughing. I could not help but snicker at her myself._

"_All that for a tiny cut!" Kuronue laughed._

"_It's not tiny, Youko. It's big," May sniffled, holding out her left hand to me._

_I examined her hand and found a very shallow cut. All it looked like was a paper cut. Kuronue looked over my shoulder to see the cut. I did not even notice he got up until I saw his face in the corner of my eyes. _

"_That small thing? That's what made you cry like a baby?" Kuronue laughed even more._

_I gave Kuronue a cold glare. It was funny but he was laughing in my sensitive ears. It felt like I went def from how loud he was laughing._

"_You're alright, Kid," Kuronue stated all of the sudden without laughing._

_Kuronue smiled at May. She realized, as well as I did, that it was a genuine smile._

**_-End-_**

**-3rd Person-**

"I remember when even the tiniest little thing would make you come running to me in tears. You have grown up strong. I'm very proud of you, May. I just wish I could have been there to see you become this beautiful, powerful young demon you are now," Youko thought sorrowfully as he looked down at May.


End file.
